Verba Scathaige – Scathach’s Words

We opened the episode “Women Warriors: The Training of Cú Chulainn“, with a reading, in Irish and English, of Verba Scathaige. This is the poem that Scáthach creates using her imbás forosna, one of the most advanced poetic techniques, used in story to see events far off in time and space. This attribute of Scáthach’s is reminiscent of the Mór Rígain, especially of her role in Cath Maige Tuired, the Battle of Moytura.

Verba Scathaige – the poem

This piece of rosc poetry comes from the edition and translation by P.L. Henry, published in the paper “Verba Scathaige“, Celtica 21, pp 191-207 (Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, 1990). I have made the English translation a bit more readable (a bit more modern), and given a line-by-line translation. For all notes, variants and analysis of the manuscript tradition of this piece, please read Henry’s original article.